Effexor-XR

i just started taking Effexor-XR on thursday... i started at a low dose and am suppose to increase it in a week... it has really made me feel sleepy and kind of distant from myself... i am really scared to increase it... i work with children and need to be alert ... did anyone notice it get worse when they stepped up? or am i worring about something i shouldn't? lyn

it made me an insomniac...and if i did sleep i'd have the most vivid horrible nightmares....so i guess u can say it didnt make me sleepy...BUT my dr said that those side effects are RARE...so if you havn't experienced them don't fret. I think with most drugs you will get less tired in time...apart from sedating ones lol...so maybe you just need to get used to the drug..that is what drs have told me anyway...I guess if it does make you exceptionally drowsy and sleepy you could ask your dr if you could change to a medication....that keeps you alert rather than sleepy...since you work with children.....

Effexor XR is a great AD and it also has the added benefit of helping with anxiety.

Those symptoms are common and will go away as your body gets used to taking the med.

Hang in there!
Best,
Okie

I'm on Effexor - XR and it didn't make me sleepy. I did get other side effects when I first went on it, mainly nasty headaches, but they went away after a couple of weeks.

Give yourself time to adjust to the med & if it continues to make you sleepy, try taking at night instead of in the morning. That's what I do with my risperidone.

--splitimage

did you notice it get worse when you increased the dose? i want to give this a fair chance... but i was thinking maybe i would ask to stay at the lower dose for awhile...maybe until spring break and i don't have to work...lyn

I found I got side effects every time I increased the dose - but they've always gone away, aside from some permanent one's that aren't a big deal. If you're worried, might make sense to stay a little longer at the lower dose.

I don't know what your dose is, but I was told by pdoc that a therapeutic dose actually starts at 150 mg every day. I know there is the 37.5 mg and 75 mg. capsules, but at those low doses you don't get the full benefit on the serotonin and norepinephrine. Apparently the effects of the norepinephrine don't kick in until you are at 150 mg qd.

I think it's a good med, but as you know everyone is different. But try not to give up on it too soon.
Take care,
Okie

thank you for your help... he started me on the 37.5 for a week and then wants to increase it to the 75... he said that for anxiety usually they need to increase to the 150... and he wanted me to be prepared to be on it for at least a year before he will agree to let me try to decrease... it all feels kind of overwhelming ... lyn

I take 75mg. At first it made me a frantic insomniac. Now, I take it with clonazepam and I'm fine. I sleep really well and my anxiety has diminished.

I have been on Effexor for a while now, but I am on such a low dose that I wonder if it is doing anything. I have posted a few times with no feedback, does anyone know if Effexor helps with OCD. I am on 75 mg. but still feel frustrated and overwhelmed. I have obvl not talked with my Doc about it yet.

i am on it for anxiety... i just increased to 75mg this week... it is helping with the anxiety...i have only really had 2 bad days... i don't know about ocd... my urges to si are much quieter...it's causing my stomach to be a bit upset ...my doctor said that with anxiety it usually needs to be increased to 150 mg maybe it's the same for ocd... lyn

I'm on 375 mg a day. It's done wonders for my depression, but absolutely nothing for my anxiety. I also take Celexa, which is also supposed to help with Anxiety but doesn't for me. I have to take clonazapam for the anxiety.

and yes an upset stomach is one of the side effects that's never really gone away for me. I always get a little nausea about 4 hours after I take it. it makes me slightly dizzy too.

--spltiimage

my stomach is really a mess... my med doc told me he wants me to hang in there ... that it will get better...and to just force myself to eat... no less then 1300 cals a day... the last two days i haven't been able to eat more then 500 cal... my t has me show him my food journal ... he isn't going to be too happy tomorrow...did you wake up with a prickly feeling? lyn

Yeah food is definitely an issue - I have to force myself to eat. I think the reduced appetite effect was masked for a lot of years for me, becuase I was drinking so heavily, now I just basically have no real appetite and food generally isn't all that appealing.

I don't get any kind of prickly feeling when I wake up.

splitimage

i just started it. in hospital they had me on the 37.5 but now im on 75. i get a headache each day, but i kind of like not being as hungry. lol

it seems some days are worse then others... yesterday i had a headache... and this week i am having anxiety... which last week i didn't... not sure whats up with that... but my doc said that in the beginning it could cause an increase in anxiety... and that usually it takes 150 for panic attacks... but i want to give 75 a chance first...lyn

I have been on this med for a long while and have also tried several others. Once i got thru the dosing up and leveled out i felt so much better. It has helped me more than any other med i have been on for depression and anxiety/panic disorder. I do know the loss of appetite, the tingling sensations, headaches do go away. The only time I have those sensations now is if I am unable to get my meds or mess up my schedule. I take 150 twice a day.

I think the tingling or bzzzt evertime your turn your head was the worst for me to get thru. Kinda felt like you had been watching static on the TV screen for hours and you inheritted the visual sensation as a physical one, IDK. It's really weird and hard to explain. But it does go away. I hope you are able to find some relief soon.

i get a tingling sensation in my whole body when i am waking up... some days are worse then others... is that what you are talking about... or was it just in your head... i am asking because i am wondering if it has something to do with my blood sugar...i started getting this feeling when i was on lexapro.. and had some of it after i discontinued the welbutrine so i am so confused as to what is causing it...lyn

it was mainly with my face/head and arms. If you think it may be your sugar you should probably talk to your doctor.

i plan to speak with my doctor but it sounds like it maybe the same thing... i feel it mostly in my face and upper torso...lyn

I was on 75mg for a long time. At first it seemed to help, but I think I got used to that dose and it wasn't really helping me like it was supposed to. The begining of February I was increased to 150mg. The psychiatrist told me that 75 mg was a "baby" dose. I did notice a big difference with the increase. I am now at 225mg. I have not noticed as much of a difference from 150 to 225 as I did from 75 to 150. I don't know if it helps for OCD because I don't have that. I hope this helps a little.

i am still having some side effects... pretty tired right now... but i had a really busy week... so maybe that's it... still no appetite... but have lost 20 lbs... so that's good...lyn

the Efforxor takers seem to suffer from most serious side-effects. you will get used to to a CERTAIN degree in the future while more side-effects remain to be felt in the coming days.
luckily it WONT prevent your work which is related to children.
take care

the effexor is really helping with the panic attacks... and i don't feel like my thinking is groggy... but i am so tired... and the really weird thing is when i have a flashback (first time today) ... or a memory hit... it's like looking at it from far away without any anxiety or panic... like it isn't connected... i know i am not explaining this well... lyn

I know that feeling....kind like experiencing things in the third person. It is strange, but I much prefer it to panic attacks.